feminism

I don’t even know where to begin here, other than to express profound disappointment that we are doing this yet again. For those of you who do not follow The Hamilton Spectator, yesterday an Op-Ed was published called ‘The Problem with Feminism‘. If you don’t want to read it the TLDNR version is essentially: “feminism was once important, but now it is bad”, followed by a list of reasons that are all entirely not things. I cannot believe that we are doing this again, Hamilton Spectator.

I cannot believe that in 2017 there are still people who willfully misrepresent what feminism is, which is the belief that humans of all gender identities and expressions are deserving of equal rights, respect and treatment. Being critical of ‘the construct of feminism’ as a whole is not brave or original, it is oppressive and disgusting. Full stop.Continue reading

Finn’s working on finishing their high school degree and is constantly on the lookout for more puppies to cuddle.

They kindly allowed us to interview them for our blog:

Why did you choose a placement with SACHA – an intersectional feminist collective?

I chose SACHA because I knew it was an intersectional feminist organization. I am an intersectional feminist and thought it would be a good way to improve my knowledge and also just help me to improve on being a better feminist which is very important to me.Continue reading

Last Saturday’s screening of She Said Boom: The Story of Fifth Column at Factory Media Centre was so energizing, I created a classic punk playlist of pioneering bands to get you curious, excited and empowered!

Fifth Column, “She Said Boom” (1990)

A rollicking song with awesome swirling organ solo, GB Jones once described the title of it as “3 simple words that mean being responsible for your own pocket-sized revolution.”

Raincoats, “Off Duty Trip” (1979)

The Raincoats were an English band that influenced leading grunge bands from the 1990s. “Off Duty Trip” is a harrowing song about sexual assault at the hands of a soldier.

Au Pairs, “You” (1979)

The Au Pairs often challenged notions of femininity, monogamy and gender roles through their intelligent songs.

The Slits, “Typical Girls” (1979)

The Bags, “Babylonian Gorgon” (1979)

The Bags were from Los Angeles, and were led by fierce Latina musician, author, artist, educator and feminist Alice Bag, who still performs to this day as a solo artist. The Bags’ songs took on subject such as feminism, sexual assault and immigration.Continue reading

Romita Sur is an intersectional feminist and believes that solidarity within community is important to bring about change. Romita is studying law at McGill University and is a member of the Feminist Collective of McGill Law. Previously, Romita was the faciliator of McMaster University’s United in Colour , a support and advocacy group for students of colour that uses a Black Feminist framework.

How did the campaign #LawNeedsFeminismBecause start? What the goals of the campaign?

About 2 years ago, two women of color started this campaign at McGill Law called “I am a feminist and…”. People spoke about a variety of things. This year at a team meeting in October, we thought about our goals as the Feminist Collective and making the group more intersectional. We realized the lack of female scholars, people of color, and Indigenous peoples in our readings. So we thought, why not talk about why Law needs feminism. From there two students (Rachel Kohut and Vanita Sachdeva) who had connections with professional photographers took on the project and brought all these quotes and photos to life.

The goal of the campaign is the challenge the notion of law as a whole. At McGill, we learn two systems of law, the common and civil law and we see more and more that it is very calculated and does not always take into account other aspects of peoples’ lives. The launch of the event was also right after the Ghomeshi trial which I think highlighted even more why feminism is so needed in law.Continue reading

As Muslim American women, we are walking this fine line between what it means to be good and bad. So really, what does it mean to be a good Muslim, when we as American women are getting mixed messages from all different angles? We’ve decided to say – fuck it. We’ll define what it means to be a good American Muslim ourselves and through our #GoodMuslimBadMuslim podcast. And poke fun at both sides of this margin. We’ll create our own narrative how we see fit, and with lots of satire and laughs.

Why is it important/empowering/essential for Muslim women to have space to talk about Islamophobia and safety strategies?

Taz: We are living in a time where fear mongering is being used as a political tactic and Muslims are the latest victims. Because of this, anyone perceived as Muslim – from wearing a hijab to having brown skin, is a potential victim of fear mongering when out in public. To have space to feel empowered is essential for Muslim women so that when they are in public and when they have to deal with patriarchy, white supremacy, or islamophobia – that they will also have bravery. That’s what we can do in the conversations, the power to be brave. And strategies how to show it.

Zahra: Just knowing that this space exists to discuss real safety strategies takes the conversation out of the realm of paranoia into something real, a real threat, a real danger. As women, we feel attacked all the time and it’s scary for me to acknowledge that these threats are real. And, as with all self defense strategies for women, it’s not enough to know how to mace an attacker, for example. We have to know the steps that come next. That learning happens in these professionally structured environments. Continue reading

The hashtag #BeenRapedNeverReported took off on twitter after allegations about numerous sexual assaults committed by Jian Gomeshi emerged.

Predictably, many were quick to question the accusations against Gomeshi and were suspicious of the women’s motives. What were these women hoping to gain by coming forward? Weren’t they just attacking Gomeshi, beloved celebrity of the CBC? Importantly many asked: If these women had truly not consented to sexual activity with Gomeshi and had experienced the violence described, why then had they not come forward sooner?

I say that this is an important question but not for the same reasons that the mainstream media asks it…

Survivors who speak up are used to hearing this question. It is thrown out to undermine the truth of their stories.

Most survivors do not report their assaults. In Canada, 1 in 3 women and 1 in 6 men will experience sexual assault. Statistics for the trans community are not well documented but we know that rates of violence against trans folk are staggering. And yet, crime rates do not reflect this reality.